UNIT 8; PSYCHOLOGICAL PERSPECTIVES FOR HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE

Description of Unit

The aim of this Unit is to introduce the learner to the different psychological perspectives and to encourage the application of these approaches to the study of health and social care. The value of psychological studies to the understanding of health and social care will be examined.

You will consider the meaning of the term ‘theories’ in the context of psychology and begin to appreciate the diversity of psychological theories. You will examine the principal psychological perspectives and then apply them to the health and social care sector in order to gain understanding of the potential value of psychology in these sectors.

SUMMARY OF LEARNING OUTCOMES

To achieve this unit a learner must:

1. Understand psychological approaches to study
2. Be able to apply psychological approaches to health and social care.

HOW THIS UNIT WILL BE ASSESSED

To reach Pass level, the evidence must show that the learner is able to:

P1 describe the application of behaviourist perspectives in health and social care
P2 explain the value of the social learning approach to health and social care
P3 describe the application of psychodynamic perspectives in health and social care
P4 describe the value of the humanistic approach to health and social care service provision
P5 explain the value of the cognitive perspective in supporting individuals
P6 describe the application of biological perspectives in health and social care

To reach Merit level, the evidence must show that, in addition to the Pass criteria, the learner is able to:

M1 analyse the contribution of different psychological perspectives to the understanding and management of challenging behaviour
M2 analyse the contribution of different psychological perspectives to health and social care service provision.

To reach Distinction level the evidence must show that, in addition to Merit criteria, the learner is able to:

D1 evaluate the roles of different psychological perspectives in health and social care

TASK 1 (relevant grading criterion P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, P6)

Write short essays on each on the following 6 topics – try to keep your word limit to 500 words. This is good practice for you if you are planning on going to University next year. The skill of summarising information is an important one you need to practice.

1. Essay Title: Describe the application of the behaviourist perspectives in health and social care. (P1)

You will need to include information on the role of reinforcement in managing and shaping behaviour and the theories of Pavlov (classical conditioning) and Skinner (Operant Conditioning). Remember to clearly describe how these theories are used to understand individual behaviour in health and social care settings eg understanding challenging behaviour, changing/shaping behaviour

Hand in date: 29th September 2008

2. Essay Title: Explain the value of the social learning approach to health and social care service provision. (P2)

You will need to include in your essay how other individuals, groups, culture and society affect the behaviour of individuals. You also need to explain the self-fulfilling prophecy, role theory and the theories of Bandura (learning by observation). You will also need to explain the value of the social learning approach to health and social care provision i.e. how do these theories influence the way we manage behaviour in health and social care settings eg promotion of anti-discriminatory behaviours and practices, use of positive role models in health education campaigns.

Hand in date: 6th October 2008

3. Essay Title: Describe the application of psychodynamic perspectives in health and social care. (P3)

You will need to describe the theories of Freud (the importance of the unconscious mind) and Erikson. Both Freud and Erikson’s theories believe that early experiences are very important